StemCell Therapy

Former Republican Congressman Chris Collins lied and cheated during his term in office all the way into a 26-month prison sentence.

He was charged with wire fraud, conspiracy to commit securities fraud, securities fraud, and lying to the FBI. The evidence prior to his guilty plea was overwhelming, yet that did not prevent Collins from constantly lying that he was innocent, nor did it deter the Republican Party from re-nominating him and extolling him as a paragon of virtue and most importantly, an ardent and unwavering supporter of his majesty, and liar-in-chief, Donald Trump.

Because in the final analysis that is what the Republican Party is now all about, blindness devotion to Donald Trump, the most prolific liar and con man to ever come upon the American political scene. We will soon see the candidates to replace convict Collins on the Republican ballot tripping over themselves to out Trumpian one another in order to earn the nomination of the now cult of Trump.

Truthfulness be damned, for the nomination will go to the candidate who is most willing to abandon decency, honor, integrity and adherence to the Constitution in order to gain the blessing of the golden idol now sitting upon the throne of the presidency.

I can only pray that the voters of the 27th Congressional District will finally wake up and realize that they deserve better, that the economy can flourish without deserting all the values that have set the United States apart from the other nations of the world and that the Republican party has cheated them before and will cheat them again.

Richard Kirisits

Kenmore

Read this article:
Letter: Voters in the 27th District deserve better treatment - Buffalo News

A mother-of-two from Yeovil faces the heartbreaking prospect of losing her sight within a year if she is unable to raise enough money to undergo pioneering treatment.

Jemma Jackson says the thought of no longer being able to see Oscar, 14, and Alfie, 6, has left her with a "pain like I've never known and a fear I could never have imagined".

The 32-year-old single mum has lived with type one diabetes since the age of three, but in recent years, she has developed proliferative retinopathy, a disease that can cause rapid and progressive blindness if left untreated.

The only treatment available on the NHS has been unsuccessful, leaving her needing to raise at least 5,000 to enable her to receive injections privately.

It involves injecting a chemical into the eyeball, stopping the growth of blood vessels inside the retina, with the hope of preventing sight from deteriorating any further.

Jemma said: "Any parent can relate and understand how painful the prospect of not being able to see your childrens faces ever again would be.

"Its a pain like Ive never known and a fear I could never have imagined.

"I struggle but I am able to carry on a normal-ish life with the vision I do have left.

"If I were to lose anymore, or all of my vision, I honestly dont know what I would do. The thought makes me feel sick to my stomach.

"I know I am lucky in many other ways, I should and would be blind already if it was not for the treatments Ive already had, but I am so scared at what my future might hold.

"I just really want to keep my vision for as long as possible, so I can see my kids grow up, and then my eyes can finally give up.

"Until then, I desperately want to keep fighting."

Anyone who wishes to donate to the cost of Jemma's treatment can do so via GoFundMe .

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Mum fears never seeing kids' faces again due to condition causing blindness - Somerset Live

More than mere information, the gift of knowledge refashions the heart to love and serve God, and his people. (CNS illustration/Tyler Orsburn)

By Mike Nelson Catholic News Service Posted January 24, 2020

What is knowledge? More specifically, what is knowledge in relation to our Catholic faith?

Several years ago, I came upon St. Bonaventures Prayer for the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit. A 13th-century cardinal and follower of St. Francis of Assisi, St. Bonaventure is also a patron saint of our parish, Mission San Buenaventura in Ventura, California, where my wife directs music and liturgy and I play piano.

Reading this prayer inspired me to set St. Bonaventures prayer to music, in which I combined two gifts to make part of a verse: Grant us courage, grant us knowledge, so we may know and protect what is good.

The actual words of St. Bonaventures prayer suggest I was, hopefully, on the right track: May he impart to us the gift of knowledge, which will enable us to discern your teaching and distinguish good from evil.

Knowledge can be a tricky quality (or gift, if you will) to assess. Many of us have heard that it doesnt take an active Catholic to know what the Catholic Church teaches. Inactive Catholics, non-Catholics and even atheists can be just as knowledgeable about Catholic teaching as those who practice their faith in some cases, more so.

The key, of course, is taking to heart what we know and acting on it. Or, as bishops instruct diaconate candidates during the rite of ordination: Believe what you read, teach what you believe and practice what you teach.

That, in the context of our Catholic faith, should give us a clue as to what knowledge actually means. Knowledge simply for knowledges sake, St. James suggested rather pointedly, means nothing without action inspired by that knowledge: What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? (Jas 2:14).

As an adult, I attended confirmation preparation classes at another parish (it was a pre-RCIA preparation process), designed to teach us facts about the faith I would profess at the Easter Vigil. We even took a midterm to test our knowledge.

Fortunately, I was already of the mind to become Catholic, not because of its teaching but because I was seeking a community of faith that sought to know and follow Jesus Christ. The words I once heard during a parish retreat, We are the body of Christ, we are a community of believers, and the ministries that serve church and community in Jesus name, are why I became and remain a Catholic.

This was long before I knew anything about St. Bonaventure or any of the saints, or anything about the Catechism of the Catholic Church, or very much about Scripture. But I learned very quickly about the person of Jesus, and how he was more interested in how people lived their lives than in how much they knew.

(Related: Discerning a path with the gift of knowledge.)

The Pharisees knew all too well how Jesus felt about learned people. When he healed the man born blind, the Pharisees were outraged that Jesus had performed his healing work on the Sabbath, in violation of the law.

And, believing that blindness was a result of sin, they were outraged further when Jesus suggested that blindness was more than a physical affliction.

If you were blind, Jesus told the Pharisees, you would have no sin; but now you are saying, We see, so your sin remains (Jn 9:41).

The blind man, now healed, understood as well as anyone that knowledge of Jesus, and his message to heal and serve those most in need, leads to hope for all, and calls us into action to meet those needs.

For if knowledge impacts only the mind and not the heart, what is its purpose? As St. Paul told the people of Ephesus, May the eyes of your hearts be enlightened, that you may know what is the hope that belongs to his call (Eph 1:18).

St. Thomas Aquinas a doctor of the church like his contemporary, St. Bonaventure suggested in Summa Theologica that all gifts of the Holy Spirit are very much connected to the cardinal virtues rooted in ancient Greece and later proclaimed by church leaders in the Middle Ages.

The gift of knowledge, St. Aquinas said, corresponds to the virtue of hope, which better helps us to understand the meaning of God.

God desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth: that is, of Christ Jesus, declares the catechism (No. 74). Christ must be proclaimed to all nations and individuals, so that this revelation may reach to the ends of the earth.

It is important, too, to realize that, as St. Bonaventure (inspired by Isaiah, St. Paul and others) proclaimed, there is a relationship between knowledge and the other gifts of the Holy Spirit.

If you receive my words and treasure my commands, turning your ear to wisdom, inclining your heart to understanding; yes, if you call for intelligence, and to understanding raise your voice; if you seek her like silver, and like hidden treasures search her out, then will you understand the fear of the Lord; the knowledge of God you will find. For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding (Prv 2:1-6).

***

Catholic journalist Mike Nelson writes from Southern California.

Read this article:
True knowledge renews the heart - CatholicPhilly.com

ABU DHABI, 23rd January, 2020 (WAM) -- The Zayed Higher Organisation for People of Determination, ZHO, launched the initiative, "Bridges of Hope to Support People of Determination", in cooperation with the Emirates Red Crescent, ERC, for the Syrian refugee families of People of Determination at the Mrajeeb Camp in Jordan, as part of the ZHOs efforts to support People of Determination in foreign countries by collaborating with the ERC'S initiatives and projects.

The initiative aims to provide 148 families of Syrian "refugees with determination" guidance to mitigate psychological pressures and stress and provide families with background information, practical training sessions, and psychological and social counselling.

Abdullah Abdulaali Al Humaidan, Secretary-General of ZHO, who accompanied the ZHOs team, stated that the organisation had launched the initiative under the guidance of the wise leadership, as well as the supervision and concern of H.H. Sheikh Khalid bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of the Board of Directors.

Al Humaidan extended his appreciation to the ERC, headed by H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler's Representative in Al Dhafra Region, and to all the employees there for their genuine and fruitful cooperation with the ZHO. He also thanked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and its minister, Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, as well as the UAE Embassy in Jordan for supporting this initiative and collaborating with the ZHO. He finally thanked the parents at the Mrajeeb Camp for joining the initiative, as well as the ZHOs employees.

Ahmed Ali Al Balushi, UAE Ambassador to Jordan, received Al Humaidan and the accompanying delegation as part of the delegations visit to the Kingdom of Jordan to implement the initiative and praised the delegations efforts and the wonderful humanitarian initiative for the People of Determination.

Moza Ahmad Al Salami, Director of ZHOs Al Ain Autism Centre and the head of the team, said, "This initiative was launched in collaboration with the ERC after signing a cooperation agreement with the ZHO. The team includes Moza Ahmad Al Salami, initiatives coordinator and supervisor; Ghadeer Al Oteibi, senior social worker; Anoud Al Hajri, psychologist; Sheikha Salem Al Kabi, specialised teacher, and Ahmad Al Zoghbi, specialised teacher."

She added that 148 families were part of the initiative, including those suffering from cases of Autism Spectrum Disorder, intellectual disabilities, physical impairment, deafness, and blindness and Down syndrome.

Moza Al Salami revealed that a team of staff members had created a sensory room called the "Bridges of Hope Initiative Room to Support People of Determination", where the staff was trained by a specialist in special educational needs from the camp on how to best utilise the room to serve families and people of determination.

Al Salami pointed out that the initiative is aimed at providing participants with skills to help them lead independent lives, acquire appropriate habits, and protect themselves.

This is in addition to helping children develop different intellectual skills and language capabilities and teaching them to rely on themselves, acquire appropriate eating habits, and inculcate major and minor life skills and kinetic synergy capabilities.

WAM/Rasha Abubaker

Original post:
People of Determination at Syrian refugee Mrajeeb Camp in Jordan provided with psychological support - Jordan - ReliefWeb

By James Hall, Commercial Director, Striata UK

While most people understand the importance of making the physical world as accessible to as many people as possible, including those with disabilities, digital accessibility is less well-regarded but equally important. And while a lot of ground has been covered with regard to the websites, attention is now slowly turning to email.

Much time is spent designing, developing and testing emails to ensure they render correctly on different screen sizes and in the most commonly used email clients, to provide a good email experience. Not enough attention is paid, however, to ensuring people who have disabilities are able to consume these emails.

To put that into perspective, according to the World Health Organisation, at least 2.2 billion people globally have a vision impairment, which ranges from needing glasses to total blindness. Thats more than the total user base of Gmail (1.5 billion) and logically would make up a significant portion of the 4 billion email users, worldwide. Why should there be any less effort spent on them to ensure an email renders well on the assistive device they use.

But what does email accessibility look like and how can you ensure that your emails are as accessible as possible?

What is email accessibility?

Email accessibility is the practice of making an email easy to read for as wide an audience as possible, including those with visual, auditory, motor or cognitive disabilities. Email accessibility is an important part of User Experience (UX) and applying accessibility principles will result in the best possible experience for all users.

There are a number of assistive technologies that help people with disabilities access the web and email. These include screen readers (used by people with visual impairment, mobility limitations and learning disabilities), which read the content of a screen aloud using text-to-speech, and screen magnifiers (used by people with low or partial vision) which enlarge a portion of the screen so that the content is readable.

Content

Most email writers already know the importance of ensuring that the content has a logical flow, and the message is easy to understand. This becomes more important when one considers how email will be read by a visually impaired person or anyone with cognitive disabilities such as dyslexia.

So, for example, subject lines should be short and to the point in order to perform best when read aloud through a screen reader. Language should be similarly clear and concise. Rather use simple words and language making it easier to understand for both those with cognitive difficulties, as well easier to understand when read through a screen reader.

For the same reason paragraphs should be short and well structured, and long lists and tables should be avoided.

Designing for accessibility

Layout and design accounts for a large part of how accessible an email will be, from color, font size and font choices, to the way images are treated. As with design for different screen sizes, there are guidelines for designing emails that are suitable for screen readers and magnifiers.

Making judicious use of whitespace around paragraphs, bulleted copy and images is not only good for accessibility, it makes skim-reading easier too. Another important factor when designing for accessibility is color, especially for users that are color blind. Blue is a good color to use, because it is not affected by red and green color blindness.

There should also be adequate contrast between the text and background color of your call to action buttons, and links should be prominent and easy to click.

HTML Developers

Understanding how an email is read using a screen reader and how it appears using a magnifier is something all HTML coders should know.

Some basic guidelines include using heading styles in logical sequence (making it easier for someone using a screen reader to navigate by sections), limiting the animation to 3 seconds in animated gifs, avoiding tables, and cutting back on the use of multiple spaces in your code as a screen reader will read these out loud as blank.

Testers

Whilst an email is often tested across all major device types, screen sizes, and email clients, its worth making the extra effort when it comes to accessibility.

Fortunately, there are tools that make this easier. For example, some email testing platforms such as Litmus and Email on Acid now offer accessibility testing features as part of their service.

Even with the use of these tools, however, one should still test email with images off to see how readable it is for people who dont see the images (for whatever reason). Check the flow of information and whether the essence of the message is conveyed, even if no images are present. Additionally, skim-read the email in a few seconds as this is how most people read online.

Worthwhile effort

While ensuring that your emails are fully accessible does take effort, there can be no denying that its worth the investment.

Most of the work required to ensure that blind people and those with visual impairment can access your emails is in line with email best practice.

The overall email experience, therefore, wont just be improved for customers with disabilities but for everyone.

Read the original:
Email accessibility is crucial: here's how to get it right - Global Banking And Finance Review

Vision provides a rich source of information that most peoples lives revolve around. Yet, for blind people, how do they conceive of visual intake and what happens to regions of the brain dedicated to vision if a person doesnt have typical visual input? These are questions that drive Marina Bedny PhD, an Assistant Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences and principal investigator of a neuroplasticity and development lab at John Hopkins University.

Bedny spoke at Dukes Institute for Brain Sciences on Friday, January 17th, about her work with congenitally blind adults. Her lab explores similarities and distinctions of visual perceptions between blind and seeing people and seeks to understand how nuanced, natural variation in experience shapes the human mind and brain.

Many of the studies Bedny discussed have very important linguistic components. In one trial, she investigated the meaning of verbs pertaining to light events and visual perception as compared to touch, amodal, auditory, and motion verbs.

Both blind and sighted people displayed nearly identical results when comparing the different types of verbs used in the study. This showed that there were no differences in what blind people knew about the terms. Analysis of the verbs revealed that linguistic dimensions of intensity and instability were used to evaluate the words comparative meanings. Blind people agreed more on the comparison of sound emission and touch perception words. This shows that blind participants have more aligned comprehension of the meanings of other sensory terms compared to sighted people.

In other cases, Bednys lab assessed what blind individuals know about color. One study used three object types natural kinds, functional artifacts, and non-functional artifacts. These categories were used to evaluate agreeance not only on color, but the relevancy of color to certain objects functions as well.

Another crucial question of Bednys work looks at how the innate structure of the brain constrains cortical function. The findings show that the visual system in blind participants has been repurposed for higher cognitive functions and that portions of the visual system connected to high cognitive abilities are invaded by the visual systems. Along with repurposing visual regions for linguistic use, Bednys lab found that visual regions of the brain are active during numerical processing tasks too.

Blind people display additionalactivity in the visual centers of their brain in numerous studies beyond havingthe same regional brain responsiveness as sighted people. Though furtherresearch is necessary, Bedny proposes that there is a sensitive period duringdevelopment that is critical to the specialization of the brain. Study participantswho have adult-onset blindness do not show the same sensitivity and patternedresponses in visual cortices repurposed for different functions as congenitallyblind subjects.

At birth, the human cortex is pluripotent providing the best of both worlds, Bedny said. The brain is prepared but highly flexible. Her studies have repeatedly shown that the brain is built for and transformed by language, and they underscore the importance of nature and nurture in human development.

Post by Cydney Livingston

More:
Visual Perception in Congenitally Blind Adults - Duke Today

A 4-year-old Iowa girls tragic bout with the flu should remind everyone why getting vaccinated is so important. Her family says that the unvaccinated girls infection led to serious neurological complications that have left her blind, perhaps permanently.

According to CNN, Jade DeLucia became sick with the flu right before Christmas. Though DeLucia appeared to have little more than a mild fever at first, her parents found her unresponsive one morning, prompting a trip to a local hospital.

Once there, she experienced a seizure, which necessitated an emergency airlift to another hospital 80 miles away in Iowa City. Doctors there eventually confirmed that the flu had made its way to the girls brain, causing a rare but well-known complication of flu called encephalopathy. DeLucia would spend over a week in the intensive care unit, fully in a coma.

Thankfully, during the first week of January, DeLucia woke up and steadily regained her ability to eat and talk. But her vision didnt return, despite her eyes being perfectly fine. The infection had damaged the areas of her brain that helped her see, and its unclear whether she ever will see again. She may also develop other lingering problems, such as learning or cognitive difficulties, her neurologist told CNN.

It affected the part of her brain that perceives sight, and we dont know if shes going to get her vision back, Theresa Czech, a neurologist who treated DeLucia at the University of Iowa Stead Family Childrens Hospital, told CNN. In about three to six months from now well know. Whatever recovery she has at six months, thats likely all shes going to get.

According to DeLucias family, she had gotten vaccinated for the flu last March. But they mistakenly believed that the vaccine would protect her for an entire year. In reality, an annual flu shot only provides some protection against the strains of flu encountered during the upcoming, current, or most recent winter season.

The vaccine doesnt completely eliminate the risk of contracting the fluon average, its about 40 to 60 percent effective at preventing the flu, largely depending on whether scientists havedone a good job at predicting the strains in circulation that season. But even when it doesnt fully work, it still greatly reduces the odds of someone developing the sort of serious, life-threatening complications that DeLucia encountered.

The family hopes that their story can encourage more people to get vaccinated.

If I can stop one child from getting sick, thats what I want to do, Amanda Phillips, Jade DeLucias mother, told CNN. Its terrible to see your child suffer like this.

While this current U.S. flu season is thought to be a relatively mild one, it still may be responsible for up to 12,000 deaths, 150,000 hospitalizations, and over 6 million doctors visits, as of the first week of January, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And its still not too late to get your flu shot or spray.

See the original post here:
A 4-Year-Old Girl's Sudden Blindness Is a Tragic Reminder of Why Everyone Should Get the Flu Shot - Gizmodo

Study after study has shown that people fear vision loss more than they fear cancer, stroke, heart disease, and other serious health problems. But a new study shows that Americans are scared about an issue they know very little about. And what they dont know is putting them at risk of vision loss, including blindness.

A survey conducted by The Harris Poll shows that while 81% of adults say they are knowledgeable about eye/vision health, less than 1 in 5 (19%) were able to correctly identify the three main causes of blindness in the U.S., which are glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic eye disease.

Why does this matter? Because most people are also unaware of key facts that could protect them from vision loss, according to the survey. For example, only around one-third of adults (37%) know you do not always experience symptoms before you lose vision to eye diseases. And less than half (47%) are aware your brain can make it difficult to know if you are losing your vision by adapting to vision loss.

Ophthalmologists, physicians who specialize in medical and surgical eye care, have more tools than ever before to diagnose these eye diseases earlier and to treat them better. But these advances cannot help patients whose disease is undiagnosed.

Further, ophthalmologists cannot adequately care for patients who are unaware of the seriousness of their disease. Far too often, ophthalmologists witness the consequences of patients entering our office too late to avoid severe vision loss.

In 2020, we want all Americans to have a clear vision when it comes to eye health. That starts with educating yourself about eye diseases.

The consequences of failing to increase awareness about eye health can be dire. Right now, the number of Americans affected by these potentially blinding eye diseases is expected to double within the next 30 years, due mainly to the aging of the population.

Its important to note that vision loss affects more than the eyes. Vision loss is also associated with the following:

All of these complications of vision loss can worsen other chronic illnesses.

Another key finding from the Harris poll is that less than half (47%) of respondents were aware that vision loss and blindness does not affect all people equally. But your risk of developing an eye disease varies significantly by your age, ethnicity, family history, and whether you smoke. Here are some relevant facts:

The Harris poll also found that only around one-third of adults surveyed (37%) know that vision loss is not inevitable as you age. Many people think vision loss is just a normal part of aging but it doesnt have to be. You can take many steps to reduce your risk of vision loss, including

Just because you can see well, doesnt mean all is well. Thats why the American Academy of Ophthalmology recommends that healthy adults see an ophthalmologist or an eye care professional for a comprehensive, baseline eye exam by age 40 and have their eyes checked every year or two at age 65 or older.

People who have other risk factors will need to be seen more frequently. People with diabetes should have a dilated eye exam every year. African Americans, age 40 and older, and people with a family history of glaucoma should have a dilated eye exam every 2 years.

If you are concerned about the cost of the exam, the Academys EyeCare America program may be able to help. This program provides eye care through volunteer ophthalmologists for eligible seniors 65 and older and those at increased risk for eye disease. See if youre eligible, visit http://www.aao.org/eyecareamerica.

Medicare provides an annual dilated eye exam for Medicare beneficiaries over 65 at high risk for glaucoma. Those eligible for this service are people with diabetes, family history of glaucoma, or African Americans over 50. To learn more, call 800-633-4227.

2020 is the year to get smart about eye health. For ophthalmologist-reviewed information about eye diseases and treatments, eye health news, and tools to locate an ophthalmologist, visit AAO.org/EyeSmart.

***

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***

Read more from the original source:
Do You Know the 3 Main Causes of Blindness in the... - The Doctor Weighs In

Company Receives FDA Breakthrough Device Designation to Develop Smart Contact Lens;Partners with Palo Alto-based Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired

Mojo Vision, the Invisible Computing company, today announced a pair of initiatives integral to its goal of assisting people with low or impaired vision. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Breakthrough Device Designation to Mojo for the development of its smart contact lens. The company also announced a new partnership with Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired, a Palo Alto-based nonprofit that offers rehabilitation services to more than 3,000 children and adults with blindness or impaired vision each year.

Mojo Vision is building the worlds first true smart contact lens, called the Mojo Lens. The company has been developing its smart contact lens through years of scientific research and holds numerous patents on the technology. Mojo is planning an early application of its product to help people struggling with low vision by using enhanced image overlays. These overlays provide real-time contrast and lighting enhancements, as well as zoom functionality. With its inconspicuous contact lens form factor, the Mojo Lens is designed to serve as a low vision aid that could remain discreet for the wearer and allow a hands-free experience, while delivering enhanced functional vision to assist in mobility, reading, and sighting.

At least 2.2 billion people struggle with vision impairment or blindness worldwide, but rehabilitation options and technologies to enhance their vision are very limited. For those with low or impaired vision, the ability to operate the Mojo Lens discreetly and hands-free will provide more confidence and independence in day-to-day activities like crossing intersections, identifying building entrances, navigating unfamiliar environments and interacting with others.

The FDA Breakthrough Device Program is intended to help patients receive more timely access to breakthrough technologies that have the potential to provide more effective treatment or diagnosis for life-threatening or irreversibly debilitating diseases or conditions. Under the program, the FDA will provide Mojo Vision with priority review and interactive communication regarding device development and clinical trial protocols, through commercialization. The Mojo Lens is currently in the research and development phase and is not available for sale anywhere in the world.

"Receiving the Breakthrough Device Designation is a significant step in our research and development process. We look forward to continuing our work with the FDA to ensure our solution is safe and effective, and that we can bring the Mojo Lens to market and assist people with vision impairment," said Drew Perkins, CEO of Mojo Vision. "This designation continues our work towards developing a product that can truly impact peoples lives in a positive way."

Through the partnership with Vista Center, the nonprofit organizations clients will play a direct role in providing input to the companys team of scientists and engineers, helping them define the features and capabilities of Mojos innovative technology. In turn, Mojo will be able to deliver devices to market that will contribute to vision-loss rehabilitation, and improve the quality of life for Vista Centers clients and others with similar needs. The Mojo Lens will be designed to increase contrast, highlight edges, magnify objects (like text), and zoom-out to spot check surroundings, helping people with low vision navigate the world and increase their social independence.

"Through our partnership with Mojo Vision, we have a unique opportunity to help revolutionize the way those with impaired vision are able to see the world," said Karae Lisle, Executive Director of Vista Center. "Our clients will be at the forefront of this effort, playing direct, hands-on roles in the design of Mojos technology. Together through our efforts, we hope to change the future of vision-loss rehabilitation, improve the quality of life for our clients, and pave the way for others."

Mojo Vision is led by Silicon Valley veterans from Apple, Amazon, Google, HP, Microsoft, Motorola, Infinera, Agilent, and Marvell, among others, as well as medical device and optometry experts from companies including CooperVision, Abbott, Johnson & Johnson, Medtronic, Philips Healthcare, and Zeiss Ophthalmology. Dr. Ashley Tuan, Mojos VP of medical devices and a Vista Center board member, is a Doctor of Optometry from The Ohio State University, has a PhD in Vision Science from the University of California, Berkeley, and has delivered several contact lens products. She is passionate about assisting people struggling with vision impairments.

Story continues

To find out more, go to http://www.mojo.vision.

About Mojo Vision

Mojo Vision is the Invisible Computing company, dedicated to developing products and platforms that re-imagine the intersection of ideas, information, and people. Instead of being tethered to devices that are increasingly a distraction in many aspects of our lives, Mojo envisions delivering information and knowledge that is immediate but without the disruption of traditional devices. Mojo is inventing the future of computing Invisible Computing which imagines a world where information is there when you need it, technology fades away, and you can freely connect with others in a more meaningful and confident way. Founded by technology experts with decades of experience developing pioneering products and platforms and backed by some of the worlds leading technology investors, Mojo believes the future is invisible. Mojo Vision is based in Saratoga, CA.

About Vista Center

Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired, headquartered in Palo Alto, CA, is the premier regional resource nonprofit for vision loss rehabilitation services. For more than 75 years, Vista Center has served over 3,000 people annually and offers a wide range of comprehensive programs and services that empower visually impaired community members to embrace life to the fullest through evaluation, counseling, education, and training in Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Mateo, and San Benito counties.

We believe that vision loss need not be a barrier to independent living in the age of technology, heightened diversity, and inclusion in our community. http://www.vistacenter.org

Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to the technical, operational, and financial benefits of Mojo Vision's solution. These statements are not guarantees of results and should not be considered as an indication of future activity or future performance. Actual results may vary materially from these expectations as a result of various risks and uncertainties.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200116005187/en/

Contacts

Brian Mast104 West Partners for Mojo Visionbrian.mast@104west.com 720-407-6060

Kim McCoy, Director of DevelopmentVista Center for the Blind & Visually Impairedkmccoy@vistacenter.org 650-858-0202

Link:
Mojo Vision Working with FDA, Nonprofit Organization to Assist People with Low Vision - Yahoo Finance

Regularly getting an eye exam is a key action people with diabetes can take to safeguard their vision. Diabetes not only doubles ones risk for cataracts and glaucoma, but it can lead to diabetic retinopathy. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, diabetic retinopathy is among the leading causes of blindness and low vision in the United States.

Biomedical research has produced remarkable advances in our ability to treat diabetic retinopathy. First, laser photocoagulation in the 1980s and 1990s was able to slow serious vision loss. Then, in 2010, clinical trials demonstrated that injections of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) could reduce vision impairment from diabetic macular edema, a subtype of diabetic retinopathy and the leading cause of vision impairment from the disease.

Concurrently, bioengineers developed imaging technologies, such as optical coherence tomography, which measures swelling of the light-sensitive retinal tissue at the back of the eye. The ability to image the retina in such detail has radically improved our ability to follow patients over time, so we can adjust treatment strategies as needed.

Yet, despite these diagnostic and therapeutic leaps forward, our ability to optimally leverage these advances depends on patients and eye health professionals detecting the disease in its early stages.

About one in three people with diabetes have diabetic retinopathybut are unaware he or she has it because, in its early stages, it is symptom-free. The best way for a patient or eye health professional to identify diabetic retinopathy is through a comprehensive dilated eye exam, which allows viewing of the retina at the back of the eye.

Timely eye exams are necessary to take advantage of the available treatments. The American Diabetes Association advises people with Type 2 diabetes to receive an eye exam as soon as possible after their diabetes is diagnosed. Those with Type 1 diabetes should have the exam within five years of diagnosis. The schedule for regular follow-up exams thereafter is every one or two years depending on the patients risk.

Diabetes leads to complications, such as heart, kidney and eye disease by affecting large and small blood vessels in the body. In the case of late-stage retinopathy, new small vessels grow abnormally in the eye. The fragility of these vessels makes them prone to rupture, which can cause bleeding inside the eye and potentially detachment of the retina, leading to blindness.

At any stage of retinopathy, inflammation and other factors cause the accumulation of fluid or edema, within the retina. When a person develops macular edema occurring in the area of the retina that enables sharp, central vision it results in the loss of vision required for activities such as reading or seeing faces.

The risk of developing retinopathy increases the longer a person has diabetes.1 It is estimated that individuals with Type 2 diabetes have a 50-60% lifetime risk of developing retinopathy, while those with Type 1 diabetes have up to a 90% lifetime risk. Of those who develop the disease, 5-10% of them progress to late-stage disease.

Much progress has been made in understanding the underlying pathology that leads to diabetic retinopathy. High blood glucose levels can lead to degeneration of neurons in the retina. At the same time, high blood glucose levels are associated with abnormalities of small vessels in the eye and to the neurovascular unit, a complex unit of cells that regulates blood flow to neurons.

These insights about pathology inform the steps that patients are advised to take to limit their risk as much as possible. The good news is that several studies demonstrate that the risk of developing retinopathy or having it progress to later stages is lowered significantly when diabetic patients tightly manage their blood glucose and blood pressure levels. Achieving optimal blood glucose and blood pressure targets require adhering to drug therapy and a healthy lifestyle, including diet, exercise and smoking cessation.

Lack of lipid control also contributes to diabetic retinopathy. Some studies have demonstrated that persons who have better control of their dyslipidemia have less diabetic retinopathy progression.

Finally, although advances such as laser coagulation and anti-VEGF therapies have been a game-changer for managing diabetic retinopathy, they are not a cure.

Researchers including those funded by the National Eye Institute continue to explore other potential therapeutic targets for preserving vision on behalf of the growing population of people who develop diabetes. According to the CDC, the number of Americans with diabetic retinopathy is expected to grow to 14.6 million by 2050.

In addition to having a comprehensive dilated eye exam, following these simple steps can help everyone stay on top of their eye health.

References

1 Klein, R., Klein, B. E., Moss, S. E., Davis, M. D. & DeMets, D. L. The Wisconsin epidemiologic study of diabetic retinopathy. II. Prevalence and risk of diabetic retinopathy when age at diagnosis is less than 30 years. Arch. Ophthalmol. 102 (1984).

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Early detection is crucial to prevent blindness from diabetic retinopathy - Open Access Government

About 2.2 billion people today struggle to see without a pair of glassesBy ELIZABETH MERABMore by this Author22hoursago

How often do you clean your eyes or how well do you do it?Every day, we hear about whats bad for our health.Did you know that watching TV at night is bad for your eyes? In fact, looking at any type of screen right before bed in the dark, including your cell phone, e-reader, television and computer, can be harmful. This is because the levels of light are changing rapidly, so your eyes have to work hard to process the changes, which can lead to eyestrain, pain, headaches, dry eye and redness. Even worse? It can mess with your sleep schedule, too.Reading in dim light isn't advised either.These, coupled with other commonly ignored things like misusing eye make-up, sleeping in contacts, rubbing your eyes, overusing eye drops and not eating a well-balanced diet, among others, could be making your eyesight deteriorate. According to a recent report by the World Health Organisation, these have now led to at least one billion vision impaired people globally.In its first world report on vision, WHO said these simple, yet preventable, lack of simple eye care is increasingly pushing more people towards blindness now more than ever.Globally, the report added, about 2.2 billion people today struggle to see without a pair of glasses and have an impairment or blindness.While eye conditions and vision impairment conditions like short and far-sightedness, cataracts and glaucoma could be prevented, they are increasingly widespread, and far too often they still go untreated the report noted.

In a world built on the ability to see, vision, the most dominant of our senses, is vital at every turn of our lives, said WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus.Now, the world needs Sh1.5 trillion to address the backlog of blindness s due to short and farsightedness, and cataracts.Dr Alarcos Cieza, who heads WHOs work to address blindness and vision impairment, said: Millions of people have severe vision impairment and are not able to participate in society to their fullest because they cant access rehabilitation services. In a world built on the ability to see, eye care services, including rehabilitation, must be provided closer to communities for people to achieve their maximum potential.According to the report, millions of people are suffering from conditions which could be corrected through a simple operation or prevented from causing blindness if detected early. These conditions include cataracts and glaucoma. An estimated 826 million people around the world have unaddressed presbyopia, an age-related condition that causes vision to become blurred, but can usually be treated with multifocal lenses. And roughly 124 million people who are short or long-sighted (have a refractive error) do not currently wear glasses or contact lenses.Low- and middle-income regions of western and eastern sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia have rates of blindness that are eight times higher than in all high-income countries. Rates of cataract and trachomatous trichiasis are higher among women, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.

Whereas things like exposing your bare eyes to the sun are actually one of the most common causes of damaged eyesight, infections, chronic illnesses like diabetes, age, genetic disorders also contribute to this rising silent epidemic.Closer home, the report said, it is estimated that 224,000 Kenyans are blind while another 750,000 are visually impaired. The singles out the Kalenjin as largely predisposed to blindness. According to a survey in Nakuru, the odds of being blind were 2.5 times higher among the Kalenjin than the rest of the countys population.The situation in the country is worsened by the low number of eye specialists. Women, migrants, indigenous peoples, the disabled, and rural communities bear the greatest burden.Trachoma is largely found in poor, rural communities that have inadequate access to water, sanitation and health care.As a two-decade push to end blindness by 2020 draws to a close, the report noted that goal was unlikely to be met, as the number of people with myopia, an eye condition that makes it difficult for a person to see distant objects, was expected to increase from the estimated two billion people in 2010 to 3.4 billion by 2030.People in need of yearly or biennial retinal examination for diabetic retinopathy will increase by 50 per cent in 2040.

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Over 2bn struggle to see without glasses: WHO - nation.co.ke

The claim that belief in God requires some degree of blindness has been made countless times throughout recorded history. We are told we need merely accept His existence without needing to verify His existence. Yet, the existence of God does not require any degree of blindness to know He exists.

There are others who believe faith of any kind in God is automatically blind by its very definition. According to Merriam-Webster, faith has three definitions and only one has to do with having a firm belief in something in which there is no proof, which falls under 2 b. Those who do not believe in God often point to this definition as a reason to discount all faith.

2 a is often ignored, since both parts give faith a completely different meaning. Part 1 is defined as belief and trust in and loyalty to God. Part 2 is defined as belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion. Nothing under the first definition requires faith to have no proof.

There are absolutes that exist in the universe and the absolutes must have come from God. One such absolute is the first law of thermodynamics, which states energy can neither be created or destroyed. If energy cannot be created, where did the energy originate? Only God could have put energy in place at the beginning, since there is no other explanation for the very existence of something that cannot be created.

There are other absolutes, but each lead to the same questions and same point of origin. Absolutes exist and only God can bring about the answers to the questions, since only God can set the laws in place. Energy exists only because God put it there and no other scientific explanation can be given for something that we know exists that cannot be created or destroyed.

It is not just physics that proves the existence of God, but in mathematics as well. When a new formula is introduced, it is never referred to as an invention. New formulas are always referred to as discoveries. Why is it referred to as a discovery? The answer is all mathematics that will every be known is already in place and waiting for the right mind to make the discovery.

God is the only explanation for the existence of energy and God is the only explanation for the existence of mathematical formulas. The laws of physics and mathematics have been tested and both have been proven true. To deny the existence of God is to deny the overwhelming evidence that does exist.

There is other evidence of God in the very existence of Israel as a nation today. It is only through God that Israel survived her War for Independence and won the wars that followed. They should have been crushed in days due to overwhelming force of arms and soldiers, but God has never forgotten his covenant and acted on their behalf.

The Jews remain the chosen people of God and nothing can alter what God promised. His covenant was without end and no other religion has ever replaced Judaism. God scattered the people of Israel and God is calling His people home.

For those who believe Christians replaced Jews as the chosen people of God, should take a close look at Matthew 5:17 and 18.

There is scientific and mathematical evidence to show God does exist. The existence of Israel is further proof. God created energy, which cannot be created, and God created the mathematical formulas for us to discover. It is only God who could have intervened on behalf of the rebirth of Israel.

Bob Ryan is a science-fiction author and believes the key to understanding the future is to understand the past. As any writer can attest, he spends a great deal of time researching numerous subjects. He is someone who seeks to strip away emotion in search of reason, since emotion clouds judgement.Bob is an American with an MBA in Business Administration. He is a gentile who supports Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state.

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Blind Faith is Not Needed to Believe in God - The Times of Israel

(PRESS RELEASE) NEW YORK Priv Revaux, the affordable celebrity eyewear brand that exploded onto the scene two years ago, is continuing its massive retail expansion and exclusive optical partnership with Americas Best Contacts & Eyeglasses, part of National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: EYE), one of the nations largest optical retailers providing quality, affordable eye care and eyewear. After an extremely successful pilot program at select Americas Best locations, Priv Revaux is now available at all brand locations nationwide.

An impressive assortment of Priv Revauxs affordable, handcrafted, on-trend frames in both sun and optical are now available at all Americas Best locations nationwide. Prices start at $30 per pair for non-prescription sunglasses and as a special introductory offer in January, customers can get two pairs of optical frames with single vision lenses for $89.95. Each Priv Revaux style is made with high-end materials including acetate and proprietary lightweight, yet durable metal alloy. A majority of sunglasses also have polarized lenses with UVA/UVB protection.

I am so proud of our brand and how far we have come in only two short years, says Priv Revaux partner Hailee Steinfeld. Our expansion with an amazing group like Americas Best is representative of that progress. Adding our high-quality, affordably priced frames to their high-quality, affordably priced eyewear offerings is a total no brainer.

Adds Priv Revaux founder, David Schottenstein, I couldnt be more proud of our success with Americas Best, National Visions largest retail brand. This is an exciting time for us, and we look forward to supporting this expansion and our continued growth with our partners at National Vision.

The partnership expansion will kick off with an exclusive in-store shopping event and customer meet-and-greet with Priv Revaux brand partner Hailee Steinfeld on Saturday, January 11th from 2 4pm EST. The event will be held at Americas Best Contacts & Eyeglasses in Glendale, NY, located in The Shops at Atlas Park, 8016 Cooper Avenue. The partnership will be further amplified by a national advertising campaign from Americas Best, which will include social, digital and TV campaigns as well as dedicated in-store Priv Revaux fixtures utilizing the brands creative visuals and marketing assets. Additional in-store events will be planned throughout the year.

During the pilot phase, customers really embraced Priv Revaux, and we are thrilled to be able to offer their stylish frames to our Americas Best customers nationwide, said Megan Molony, National Visions senior vice president of merchandising. The partnership allows us to offer our customers a fantastic blend of stylish frames at a price they can afford and we are thrilled to be Prive Revauxs exclusive optical retail partner.

Priv Revaux was built on a shared passion for style and quality with the goal of disrupting the eyewear industry and making high end sunglasses accessible. Serial entrepreneur David Schottenstein along with an elite team including celebrity visionaries Jamie Foxx, Hailee Steinfeld and Ashley Benson, as well as VP of Celebrity Relations Dave Osokow and Creative Directors Rob Zangardi and Mariel Haenn have done just that. The brand launched in June 2017 via e-commerce and direct-to-consumer with affordable, high quality and on-trend eyewear starting at $89.95 for two pairs of optical frames with prescription.

With Priv Revaux we just want to make great eyewear, where people really appreciate the price point and quality sunglasses and frames that are fly and affordable, says Priv Revaux brand partner, Jamie Foxx. National Vision understands that, and I couldnt be more excited about our future together.

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There Might Be a Faster and Cheaper Way to Test for Myopia - InvisionMag

Neuroscientists have discovered that brain pressure is physiologically connected to eye pressure commonly associated with glaucoma. The theory that brain pressure might play a role in glaucoma has long been questioned by researchers, but until this new study, it had not been confirmed.

The groundbreaking study published in the Journal of Physiologyfound that the amount of strain on the optic nerve depends not just on eye pressure, but the difference in pressure between the brain and the eye. The study altered brain pressure in animal models and noted changes in the fluid drainage properties of the eye that could be blocked by chemicals that eliminate feedback signals from the brain. It was found that the eyes ability to clear fluid could change to restore a healthy pressure difference across the optic nerve.

Chris Passaglia, PhD, professor in the USF Department of Medical Engineering said, The drainage control system may service to protect the optic nerve from swings in eye or brain pressure. Its discovery offers a new target for glaucoma treatment, wherein the modulatory mechanisms of the system might be exploited to help lower eye pressure and impede disease progression in glaucoma patients.

Glaucomais relatively common and is the leading cause of blindness in people over the age of 60. If left untreated, it can cause damage to the optic nerve. It is associated with increased pressure in the eye due to reduced ability of the eye to maintain proper fluid drainage. This pressure then applies mechanical strain to the optic nerve as the nerve exits the eye, resulting in vision loss and potential blindness.

Symptoms of glaucoma tend not to arise until the condition is advanced, so ophthalmologists recommend checking eye pressure during routine exams using an air puff test. However, this test may miss some complex aspects of the disease that makes diagnosis a challenge.

Some patients with high eye pressure dont always show signs of glaucoma, while others who exhibit symptoms of glaucoma have normal eye pressure. This is why it is so important to have other forms of glaucoma testing.

Additional studies are currently underway to pinpoint the location of the brain cells that are sending signals to the eye and find which nerve fibers in the eye are being mediated by the brain. Researchers hope this significant advancement will help physicians better diagnose and treat glaucoma and have a greater understanding of the disease.

While there are no known ways of preventing glaucoma, blindness or significant vision loss from glaucoma can be prevented if the disease is recognized in the early stages. Anyone with high risk factors should be tested every year or two after age 35. Those at higher risk include people of African descent, people with diabetes, and people with a family history of glaucoma.

Some other preventative steps for glaucoma include getting regular exercise, wearing protective eyewear when engaged in sports activities or home improvement projects, and consuming a healthy diet. Although there is limited scientific evidence suggesting that certain vitamins and minerals prevent glaucoma or delay its progress, carotenoids (especially lutein and zeaxanthin), antioxidants (such vitamins C and E), vitamins A and D, zinc, and omega-3 fatty acids may all contribute to better vision.

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Glaucoma Is Associated with Increased Pressure in the Brain: Study - Bel Marra Health

Susan Tedeschi, Ivan Neville, Buddy Guy, Derek Trucks, John Scofield and Warren Haynes are among the all-star lineup for an upcoming tribute to the late legendary blues guitarist B.B. King. The Thrill Is Gone: A Tribute To B.B. King will be held at The Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, New York February 16 and 17.

The Thrill Is Gone will also feature Anthony Hamilton, Bob Margolin, Bobby Rush, David Hidalgo, Jamey Johnson, Jimmie Vaughan, John Scofield, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Little Steven, Robert Cray, Robert Randolph, Shemekia Copeland, Southside Johnny, Steve Cropper, Tony TC Coleman and William Bell. Acclaimed drummer/producer Steve Jordan will serve as musical director. Additional guests will be revealed in the coming weeks. On January 28, the daily lineups will be announced.

Blackbird Presents and The Capitol Theatre are producing the concert in partnership with the B.B. King Estate. A portion of proceeds from ticket sales will go towards the Seva Foundation and its mission of transforming lives and strengthening communities by restoring sight and preventing blindness. Two-night tickets go on sale this Friday, January 17 at 12 p.m. ET via Ticketmaster. Single-day tickets will be available starting on January 31.

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The Thrill Is Gone: All-Star Tribute To BB King Coming To Capitol Theatre - JamBase

Aicardi syndrome is a very rare condition that usually affects girls.

Depending on its severity, it can cause developmental delay, epilepsy, problems with vision, and a shortened life expectancy.

In this article, learn more about Aicardi syndrome, including its risk factors, symptoms, and treatments.

Aicardi syndrome is a rare condition that almost exclusively affects females, with doctors having reported only a few cases in males.

Another name for Aicardi syndrome is agenesis of corpus callosum, or ACC.

Experts think that the condition develops in an embryo during early pregnancy, when there is a change in the DNA of one or more genes.

Aicardi syndrome is not passed down through families. It occurs in people with no family history of the condition.

Doctors usually diagnose Aicardi syndrome in early infancy after the baby experiences seizures called infantile spasms.

Children with Aicardi syndrome may also have developmental delays, learning difficulties, and partial sight or blindness. They may also have a shortened life expectancy.

Aicardi syndrome is very rare, occurring in just 1 in 105,000167,000 babies in the United States. Around the world, there are likely about 4,000 people with the condition. Most of these people are female.

Researchers believe that Aicardi syndrome results from genetic mutations that happen while an embryo is forming. One change may involve the X chromosomes in affected females.

Female embryos have two X chromosomes, while males embryos have just one.

Research indicates that when the characteristic genetic mutations occur in one X chromosome, female embryos can survive because another, healthy X chromosome is present.

If these changes occur in the single X chromosome of a male embryo, it is unlikely to survive. This could explain why babies born with the syndrome are almost exclusively female.

However, very rarely, male babies have been born with Aicardi syndrome. Some boys with the condition have an extra X chromosome.

A mutation in the TEAD1 gene on chromosome 11 may also be responsible for some cases of Aicardi syndrome in boys and girls.

Scientists have yet to prove these theories definitively, and research into the causes of Aicardi syndrome is ongoing.

Infantile spasms are usually the first symptom of Aicardi syndrome. These are seizures that involve single jerks of the whole body.

The spasms often appear before 3 months of age, and they can occur several times a day.

Before a doctor can make a diagnosis of Aicardi syndrome, they need to conduct tests to rule out other possible causes of the symptoms. These alternate causes could include:

Children with Aicardi syndrome usually have some degree of developmental delay and learning difficulties.

Epilepsy is a feature of Aicardi syndrome, and one study found that those with more severe epilepsy had poorer cognitive skills, involving organization and memory.

Some people with Aicardi syndrome have milder symptoms and may not receive a diagnosis until they are adults.

A doctor can detect Aicardi syndrome's changes to the brain with an MRI scan. Some or all of the following features could be present:

People with Aicardi syndrome often have chorioretinal lacunae, which are round, whitish-yellow lesions in the retina the tissue that lines the back of the eye. An ophthalmologist can see these lesions with an ophthalmoscope.

A person with Aicardi syndrome may also have:

Sometimes, these symptoms cause partial-sightedness or blindness.

Also, some people with Aicardi syndrome have distinct facial features and other physical attributes, including:

Other health issues associated with Aicardi syndrome are:

Aicardi syndrome can cause different symptoms in different people, and the treatments also vary.

The aim of treatment is to manage the symptoms, and a doctor will tailor their approach to address each person's situation.

Some treatments focus on easing the severity and frequency of seizures. Others, such as physical, speech, and occupational therapies, can help people with Aicardi syndrome overcome developmental delays and problems relating to vision.

Having a rare disease or being the parent or caregiver of someone with this type of illness can be difficult. A person may feel isolated.

Support groups give people a space to voice their concerns and speak with others who face similar challenges.

The following groups may be useful for people with Aicardi syndrome and their loved ones:

Aicardi syndrome is a rare condition that can cause seizures, vision problems, and other symptoms. It mainly occurs in females.

Most experts think that Aicardi syndrome results from genetic mutation in embryos during very early pregnancy. It is not passed down through families.

As there is no cure for the condition, treatment aims to manage each individual's symptoms.

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Aicardi syndrome: Definition, causes, symptoms, and more - Medical News Today

SparingVision, a biotechnology company innovating treatment of blinding inherited retinal diseases such as Retinitis Pigmentosa and pioneer in the development of a gene-independent treatment for retinitis pigmentosa, attends the Biotech Showcase in San Francisco to meet with investors and strategic partners. The company announces today that Stephane Boissel is joining its Board of Directors as Chairman of the Board. Stephane Boissel is set to replace Laurent Arthaud, a representative of Bpifrance, who will remain a Board Member.

Stephane Boissel is Executive Vice President, Corporate Strategy at Sangamo Therapeutics, a gene-editing company listed on the NASDAQ. He was previously CEO of TxCell, a CAR-TReg company that he sold to Sangamo Therapeutics in 2018. Prior to TxCell, Stephane has served as CEO of Genclis a molecular diagnostic company, EVP and CFO of Innate Pharma, NASDAQ listed company and Transgene. He has been member of several boards of directors including Erytech Pharma a NASDAQ listed company and Elsalys Biotech, where he served as Chairman of the Board until 2018. Earlier in his career, Stephane Boissel worked in investment banking for Lazard, where he focused on principal investment in France, Singapore and Hong Kong.

Stephane Boissel is graduated from the IAE Lyon, University of Lyon and Paris-Dauphine University (France) and received his MBA from the University of Chicago.

"I would like to thank Laurent Arthaud who served as Chairman of the Board of SparingVision since our inception in 2016" said Florence Allouche, CEO of SparingVision, "We are pleased to welcome Stephane Boissel as new Chairman of the Board. He is a seasoned biotech professional who brings over 25 years of leadership across general management, corporate finance, strategy and business development, that will be a strong asset as SparingVision is entering in a new phase of its growth."

"I wish to thank the Board of Directors and Florence Allouche for their trust," said Stephane Boissel, new Chairman of the Board at SparingVision. "I'm delighted to share my vision and experience with Sparingvision and to join the company at such an exciting time. My first priority will be to help the team to secure the funding that will enable SparingVision to prove in human its unique concept of gene independent therapy in Retinitis Pigmentosa. Ophthalmology remains a field with significant unmet medical need and the SparingVision team is dedicated to rapidly bring its product to commercialization in order to address those needs."

About SparingVision

SparingVision is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of innovative therapies for the treatment of blinding inherited retinal diseases. SparingVision is developing SPVN06, a gene-independent treatment for retinitis pigmentosa, the most common inherited retinal degeneration. There is currently no treatment to treat all genetic forms of this rare retinal disease that leads to blindness and affects nearly 2 million worldwide. SparingVision is a spin-off of the Paris Vision Institute. Bpifrance, Foundation Fighting Blindness (US) and Fondation Voir & Entendre invested 15.5 million in the company. SparingVision was laureate and Grand Prize of i-Lab 2017, the French National Innovative Companies Competition. SparingVision has been awarded from the EIC Accelerator program (H2020 SME instrument Phase 2), securing non-dilutive funding of 2.5 million.

Florence Allouche, President CEO of SparingVision is PharmD, MBA from HEC Paris, Associate Professor at University of Paris. She has been honored by the Mercures Entrepreneurs Prize and the Women Trajectory's Awards from HEC Paris and was elected "Woman of the Year 2017" by the financial magazine "La Tribune".www.sparingvision.com

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SparingVision to Attend the Biotech Showcase During JPMorgan Conference in San Francisco, Announces the Appointment of Stephane Boissel as New...

One of Maine's most famous figures is being slammed online for espousing a controversial view.

Thousands of people responded to horror author Stephen King Tuesday after at tweet in which he said, "I would never consider diversity in matters of art, it seems to me that to do otherwise would be wrong."

The author made the statement in describing how he would conduct judging for the Academy Awards.

Critics included other authors and fans who called King's comments "unfair" and disappointing.

"Quite honestly, it was the blindness of white privilege sort of smacking you in the face," said Wes Jackson, director of the Business Creative Enterprises Program at Emerson College.

Jackson, who had followed King and admired him and his work, says the author's comments were confusing and off-brand for someone he saw as "progressive."

"If you make no effort to watch movie from Jordan Peele or other black directors, how can you possibly make the best decision?" asked Jackson.

In Maine, where libraries and stores have entire sections dedicated to Stephen King sections, the comments were not seen as controversial or shocking.

"I've only really heard a couple political things he said," one King reader said at Longfellow Books in Portland.

"When it comes to art, it's more about the quality, rather than the diversity," said Susan Roux, an artist and owner of a fine arts gallery.

Roux says she has works from people from all kinds of ethnic and economic backgrounds and her clients look at quality above all else.

"I show art from 10 different countries over here," she said. "If I didn't mark where the art was coming from, nobody would be able to tell the difference."

King himself followed up his comments up a different way.

Hours after his initial tweet, he took to Twitter again saying, "the most important thing we can do as artists is make sure everyone has the same fair shot regardless of sex, color or orientation. Right now such people are badly under represented and not only in the arts."

Jackson says that explanation still falls a bit flat and thinks the Oscars and the art world won't be truly diverse until the issue affects companies' bottom lines.

"These movements tend to switch when the dollar starts to affect you," he said.

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Stephen Kings Controversial Comments on Diversity Draw Varied Reaction - NECN

The use of QR codes has developed in leaps and bounds since it was first developed in the mid-90s.

Today, QR codes are used in almost every sector. From marketing and education to helping people with different abilities, QR Codes are ubiquitous.

The advancement in its technology allows you to easily create a QR code and link it with any information youd like the user to have. All you have to do is select one of the best QR code generators to create the code.

Most websites have an in-built landing page builder that allows you to redirect the users to a site, image gallery, PDF, audio clip, navigational directions, and more.

In India, however, QR codes rose to popularity only recently for digital payments. Payment apps like PayTM and Bharat QR gave the Indian citizens a convenient method to make payments at stores or even to pay their utility bills. Since then, the government and private organizations have discovered innovative ways to make use of QR codes to help people.

To make learning a more interactive and fun experience for students, the Department of State Education Research and Training (DSERT) includes QR codes in NCERT textbooks. These QR codes are printed along with the relevant text. When scanned, it gives the students access to additional learning material like video tutorials, images, maps, audio clips, worksheets, and more.

QR codes are being placed on trees by volunteers to educate others about the value of trees. One such example is when the botany students of PB Siddhartha College of Arts and Sciences in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, took the initiative to place QR codes on trees within their campus to spread awareness about the importance of trees. Another such effort was undertaken by Dr. Smitha Hegde hailing from Mangalore, Karnataka. She, along with her students, placed QR codes on trees around the city that educated the public about the value of each tree. In both cases, the QR codes would redirect the users to a landing page that gave them information about the trees like its general and scientific name, age of the tree, its medicinal value, or about its history/origin.

An app called HimmatPlus was launched by the Police Department in Delhi in an initiative to make commuting via public transport safer, especially for women. How this works is auto-rickshaw and public taxi drivers were assigned unique QR codes that they place behind their seat, where its visible to the commuter. The commuter can scan this QR code using the HimmatPlus app to access details about the driver and vehicle. If the commuter at any point feels unsafe, they can call for help through the app, and the police can track the journey in real-time through the app as well.

Another initiative was taken by an enterprise resource planning and web solutions firm that developed an app Gateway to School to ensure the safety of school children. How this works is any parent entering the school will have to scan the QR code that has their digital ID attached. So this way the school can keep a digital track on anybody entering the school and only parents of the children enter the premises. The app also creates an exit QR code for the parent on the app when they exit the school premises.

Cashless payments have become very popular in India with apps like PayTM and Bharat QR. It picked up steam during the time of Demonetisation in India. It presented itself as the most convenient mode of transaction. Merchants and stores without POS systems all readily accepted cashless payments, and the public did the same as well. Today, most stores in India allow their customers to pay via UPI.

Delhi and Noida Metro allows its commuters to pay digitally using a QR code. Even in Ahmedabad, bus commuters have to simp[y scan the QR code generated on the Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) app to pay for their ride.

BookMyShow allows its users to scan the QR code generated on the app to enter the cinemas, removing the need to print the movie tickets.

The official identification document Aadhar card, issued by the Government of India includes a QR code that stores information about the Aadhar card holder like their name, address, date of birth, and the fathers name.

The use of QR codes in India has come a long way. But more innovative applications are being discovered as well. Many of the use-cases are inspired by other countries as well. For example, the concept of scanning QR codes to make payments first became popular in China through apps like WeChat and Alipay. Similarly, we are now seeing innovative uses of QR all over the world. One such example is to make things more accessible for individuals with vision impairment and blindness by using QR codes.

Several initiatives have been launched to help individuals with vision impairment and blindness across different countries. Using QR codes to activate audio navigational directions or audio of bus routes at bus stations are some examples. The goal of such initiatives is to try things more accessible to individuals with vision impairment and blindness.

Lets take a look at such similar initiatives around the world:

In an attempt to make the subway more accessible for individuals with vision impairment and blindness, Tokyo Metro is experimenting with audio QR codes for navigation. Stickers with QR codes on them are stuck on the tactile walking surface indicators used by individuals with vision impairment and blindness to get a sense of their way around the subway. When the QR code on this sticker is scanned using a smartphone, theyll immediately receive audio directions using which they can easily find their way around the station.

These QR coded stickers are stuck on raised tiles around the stairs, turning points, or walls that alert individuals with vision impairment and blindness about the obstacles ahead. This enables them to walk around the subway station with more ease and help them have a safer and convenient journey.

The Public Transport Operator in Barcelona has come up with an initiative to help individuals with vision impairment and blindness go around the city with more ease. These QR codes are designed by the Mobile Vision Research Lab of the University of Alicante in collaboration with a startup in Spain NaviLens. When scanned, these QR codes alert and communicate with individuals in real-time. The QR codes can be designed to give warnings such as steep stairs or suggest the best way to enter the subway.

The smartphone vibrates when it automatically detects a QR code and alerts the individual who can then play the alert message with a flick of a wrist. Not just that, these QR codes are designed in such a way that the camera can read the QR codes from at least 15m away. These QR codes help individuals with visual impairment and blindness to go around the city with much ease and have a smoother journey.

A similar initiative can also be seen at bus stations in the city of Donostia, Spain.

To help individuals with vision impairment, QR codes are placed next to bus stations that give real-time information about bus schedules and routes. When the individual scans the QR code, they can easily read the information in a large font or hear the instructions on their smartphone. This initiative was taken by an organization called NoisyVision to help individuals with vision impairment get around the city with more ease.

To help customers with vision impairment and blindness access the menu with ease, a restaurant in Germany replaced its menu in Braille with an audio QR. When scanned, the customer can access the audio version of the menu and quickly decide what they want to order.

Such initiatives help individuals with disabilities feel more included and give them better access. It not only helps them get around but also makes them feel more independent and confident. Similar usage of QR codes is already seen at Delhi Universitys Miranda House. Audio navigational QR codes are placed around the campus to help students with VI and blindness get around with ease. When scanned, their smartphone will give our audio instructions about their current location and how to get from point A to point B within the campus.

Across the globe, organizations are coming up with innovative uses of QR codes to make the world more accessible to individuals with disabilities.

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How QR Codes Have Grown In India And The World - NewzHook

The main gate at the Auschwitz concentration camp. Photo: Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum.

The Israeli novelist Aharon Appelfeld died in 2018. His novel To the Edge of Sorrow, published in Israel in 2012, is out this week in English from Schocken Books, translated by Stuart Schoffman.

The book is set during the Holocaust. Amid recent news reports of violent antisemitism in America, a story about partisan fighters weathering a bleak Eastern European winter while trying unsuccessfully to prevent genocide stuck me as a potential downer. All the more so because, notwithstanding its title, the tale at times goes far beyond the edge of sorrow and ends up deep in the depths of it: One of the fighters once sank into a depression so deep it seemed he was finished. His face grew grayer by the hour, and he was on the edge of collapse.

Dont be scared away by the topic or the title, though: Its actually a tale with inspiring, even uplifting themes, told in a suspenseful way that makes you feel like you are right there in the woods during World War II. The leader of the band of partisans, Kamil, is described as saying, If we will learn to conquer despair, to stay fixed on our goal, and to understand that being a Jew is no small matter, we will live to see the downfall of the enemy. Or, in other words, Kamil wants to instill in us the feeling that it is impossible to fight a determined enemy without love of the tribe, its God, and its beliefs. Kamil quotes the Talmud: He who comes to kill you, kill him first.

The narrator, Edmund, had before the war dated a non-Jewish woman. She asked him, Why do people hate the Jews? This is a question still on peoples minds in contemporary reality.

January 15, 2020 1:58 pm

The questions in this book are some of the liveliest dialogue. How do we know that God is in the world? one character asks. Why dont I see him?

A character in the book named Grandma Tsirl tries to answer. Earlier generations saw God everywhere, even in the lowliest mosses; in our generation there is great blindness, and people see only what the physical eye can see. Open your eyes and look inside. God is within you.

These are questions for pondering by professors and rabbis and historians and theologians and for newspaper reporters and columnists. But they are also questions for novelists, for literature. That the questions persist are a sign they are less about the Jewish situation than about the Jewish condition, or, perhaps even for the universalists among us, the human condition. Appelfeld is dead, but people will still be reading him for years, asking his characters questions and, one hopes, learning from their answers.

Ira Stoll was managing editor of The Forward and North American editor of The Jerusalem Post. His media critique, a regular Algemeiner feature, can be foundhere.

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Book Review: Aharon Appelfeld's 'To The Edge of Sorrow' Asks the Right Questions - Algemeiner